How I check every page
Every page on Off Route carries one of two badges. Firsthand means I went there myself, and the badge shows the month. Sourced means I built the page from official sources, and the badge shows the day I last checked them.
The two badges
| Badge | What it means | Date on the badge |
|---|---|---|
| Firsthand | I went. Prices, times and routes come from my own receipts and notes. | Visited, month and year |
| Sourced | The page covers rules, such as visas, taxes or health. Every fact comes from a listed source, official ones first. | Last checked, day, month and year |
A Firsthand date tells you how old my experience is. A price I paid in March is a March price. Prices show the local currency first, then US dollars, with the month I checked the exchange rate.
Trust, about and policy pages like this one carry no badge.
Unconfirmed facts block publishing
While I draft a page, every fact I have not confirmed gets a [CHECK] note that says what to confirm and where. Facts only I can supply, such as the date of a trip, get a [YOU] note.
The site build fails while any page marked for publishing still has either note. An unconfirmed fact cannot reach this site by accident.
Source tiers
Every page ends with its sources: title, publisher, link and the date I accessed each one. Official sources come first. Each source carries one of four tiers.
| Tier | What it means |
|---|---|
| Verified | Confirmed on an official or primary source, such as a government site or the operator, on the date shown. |
| Reported | Comes from a secondary source, such as a news outlet. The text says who reported it. |
| Contested | Sources disagree. The page names both sides and leaves the call to you. |
| Unverified | I could not confirm it. The page says so in plain words. |
I never invent a source. If I cannot find one, the claim is marked Unverified or it comes out.
Corrections
Send corrections to corrections@offroutebrazil.com with the page link and what changed. I check the claim against the official source or my own records, fix the page and update its date. The corrections policy has the details.
Affiliate links and sponsors
Some pages carry affiliate links. Those pages show this line at the top: “Some links on this page pay Off Route a commission at no cost to you. It never changes what I recommend.”
Sponsored content is labelled Sponsored above the title. Lawyer listings take a flat fee only. The affiliate disclosure has the details.
Questions
- Do you visit every place you write about?
- Yes. A place page goes up only after I have been there, and its badge shows the month I went. Rule pages, such as visas and taxes, are Sourced and show the day I last checked them.
- What happens when a rule changes?
- I recheck the official source, fix the page and change its Last checked date. If the change affects a price, fee, date or rule, I add a dated correction note at the end of the page.
- Can a company pay to appear on Off Route?
- Only as sponsored content, labelled Sponsored above the title. Lawyer listings pay a flat fee only. Affiliate commissions never decide what I recommend.